Boys’ Soccer Shuts Out St. Paul’s
After 90 minutes of gameplay, Boys‘ Soccer sent St. Paul’s School packing in a home game on Saturday, Oct. 26. With a final score of 5-0, the team added another victory to its belt, bringing its season record to eight wins, five losses and one tie.
Even before the kick-off, the team felt confident. “This was the first game in a long time that we had every regular starter relatively healthy,” coach A.J. Cosgrove said. “The guys practiced very well on Thursday and Friday, and it showed on Saturday.”
The team expected to have the upper hand going in. “Our main plan of action was to simply work harder than the other team,” captain Jake Gehron said. “We already knew we had more talent.”
The players’ confidence was bolstered by a good start. “Senior Jeb Holland got things started with a tremendous run down the right flank and a great ball played in to Jake Gehron for a goal,” Cosgrove said.
During the game itself, the team made sure to keep possession of the ball. “We tried to possess the ball for the majority of the game, and expose their back four,” senior Finn O’Brien said. “They often left gaps over the top, and as a result, we were able to seam our strikers through several times.”
Senior Michael Singer added that dominating possession was highly effective. “We didn’t let St. Paul’s play their game,” he said. “Coach Cosgrove switched around the formation during the game, adjusting to the opposition’s play style.”
Players noted senior Carson Garland’s playing as a highlight. “The highlight of the game was certainly Carson Garland’s goal in the first half,” O’Brien said. “He left the defender in the dust and then put in a tidy finish to make the game 2-0.”
Cosgrove echoed O’Brien’s thoughts and noted several other key moments. “Billy Menken played a strong defensive game in the midfield, Jake Gehron scored two goals and Carson Garland, who was only playing at 87% strength according to the athletic trainers, scored a great goal that shifted the momentum in the game,” he said. Cosgrove also stressed that younger players, particularly Jonathan Jean-Baptiste, played very well.
O’Brien nontheless recognized some areas where the team could improve. “We did keep the ball well for the most part and shut down the majority of their opportunities during the game. Also, we created a lot of great chances, and probably could have put a few more goals in if it hadn’t been for some shaky officiating,” he said. In addition, O’Brien thought the team could improve on positioning, shape, and transitions.
Still, Gehron was pleased with his team’s performance. “We were constantly applying pressure to their defense the whole game,” he said. “We can always look back at games and have moments that we wish we had back. We had a few chances we could have scored. Continuing to work on our finishing will be imperative. Overall, it was a great performance.”
As a whole, the game was a solid effort. “We fought with intensity and spirit for the full 90 minutes, and we’d like to keep this up going into our last stretch of games,” Singer said.
The team beatCushing Academy 3-0 yesterday and will face Holderness School on Nov 2.